Role

Shelley is the Regional Education Leader for Te Tai Tokerau, based in Whangārei. She also delivers teaching papers for early childhood tauira across the motu and supports the academic and pastoral care of local tauira.

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Education Background

Shelley often reflects the sentiment, ‘Find a job you love and you’ll never work a day in your life,’ as something that resonates deeply with her mahi in Early Childhood Education over the last 40 years. Across her roles as a teacher, head teacher, senior teacher, early intervention teacher, and educational leader, both in Aotearoa and Australia, she has found joy, connection, learning, and laughter.

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Research Background

Shelley is deeply passionate about inclusion, ensuring equity and that the rights and needs of individual children and their whānau are seen and heard. Throughout her years of teaching, she has consistently advocated for kaiako in the profession. Upholding the rights of educators, promoting the value of teacher training and qualifications, and emphasising their positive impact on quality practice and learning outcomes for tamariki remain central to her work and professional voice.

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Teaching Interests

Shelley’s teaching philosophy centres on cultural, social, and environmental sustainability and regeneration. She is guided by the belief that understanding where you come from, what you bring with you, how you sustain the things that make you unique, and what is needed to nurture and grow that uniqueness into the future are fundamental to teaching and learning.